The background: He's a little bit jazzy, is Jamie Scott, and a little bit soulful. A chicken-in-a-basket Jamiroquai? You said it, not us. But don't be deceived by the classy arrangements and sophisticated vocals - there's grit in that there gloss. Vocally and lyrically, anyway. Park Bench Theories, Scott's forthcoming debut album, is something of a supper-club Blood On The Tracks, being a series of diary entries about Scott's ugly bust-up with his ex-missus. "The relationship is at the heart of the album," he says. "It goes from the stage of almost being married to breaking up and hitting rock bottom with nothing." Sounds nasty, even if the music is so easy on the ear it's like having your lobes tickled by seraphim wearing silk mittens.

The 25-year-old Jamie Scott, full name Jamie Scott Baylin, writes and produces his antisocial noise, sorry, Radio 2 fodder, under the enigmatic alias JS Baylin and is the singer and writer behind the band Jamie Scott & the Town (the Town being the geezers in Travis wot aren't the one with the Tintin quiff). His voice is pitched mid-way between Stevie Wonder and Jeff Buckley, if you can imagine such a weird hybrid (what, dead and blind?), with the honeyed melisma of the former and the daring acrobatics of the latter. He's released two singles, and his music last year featured in Step Up, a movie about a poor boy and a ballet dancer - sort of Billy Elliot in a tutu. He even appears briefly in the film. We've seen it. Put it this way: music is probably his best bet.

Scott started playing guitar and piano when he was seven, inspired by his parents' collection of Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway and Simon & Garfunkel albums. He formed a duo in college and played acoustic shows in London. The tragic death of his beloved aunt (memo to self: must watch that episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm again), who'd bought him a new piano, gave him a sudden burst of speed, and he furiously amassed material. He signed a record deal with Sony in 2002, but that didn't work out, so now he's on Polydor, armed with a new batch of songs.

The buzz: "It's a bit Jazz Club, but we like, we really like."

The truth: If you're the kind of soft sap who intravenously feeds on Buble-style schmoooov crooning, but want a smidgeon of edge, look no further.

Most likely to: Give Terry Wogan the horn.

Least likely to: Ever be allowed anywhere near Zane Lowe.

File next to: Jamie Cullum, Michael Buble, D'Angelo, Lewis Taylor.

What to buy: When Will I See Your Face Again is released by Polydor on August 20, with the album Park Bench Theories to follow on September 3.